Men Ranked 4th In SLC Preseason Poll
10/29/2015 8:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Sam Houston has been picked to finish fourth in the 2016 Southland Conference men's basketball race according to the annual preseason poll of the league's head coaches.
The Southland Conference has announced that defending champion Stephen F. Austin is the preseason favorite. The Lumberjacks received 12 of the 13 first place votes.
Northwestern State and A&M-Corpus Christi are predicted to finish third and fourth in the poll. Following Sam Houston in fourth are Lamar, Incarnate Word, Southeastern Louisiana, New Orleans, Houston Baptist, McNeese State, Nicholls, Central Arkansas and Abilene Christian.
Since Abilene Christian and Incarnate Word are in their third year of transition into Division I, they will not be eligible for postseason play until 2017-18.
The 2015-16 season begins Saturday, Nov. 14 with conference play starting up Jan. 2. The 2016 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament will be held March 9-12, at the Merrell Center in Katy, Texas, and will feature an eight-team single-elimination format.
Sam Houston has finished as the league's runner-up and reached the finals of the Southland Tournament in Katy each of the past two years. The Bearkats have finished among the top three teams in the Southland race nine of the past 11 seasons. The team's 50 victories in the past two years represent the most wins in consecutive seasons in program history.
Senior guard Paul Baxter, a preseason first team All-Southland pick, is the lone returning starter for the Kats. All four seniors last year earned all-league honors. Baxter is the only senior on the squad.
Aurimas Majauskas, Dakarai Henderson and Jamal Williams all three were top reserves for last year's squad.
“Those three will be stepping into bigger roles for us this season,” head coach Jason Hooten said. “We're a very junior-heavy team will several transfers joining the squad. Like most years when you have added a lot of new people, there are some growing pains. We're definitely not a finished product now. But I do like the work ethic and the toughness of the group. When it's all said and done, we're going to have a chance to be right there.”
Sam Houston opens the regular season on Saturday November 14 at SMU. The first home game is Tuesday November 17 when the Bearkats play host to Saint Thomas as 6:30 p.m. at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
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2016 Men's Basketball Preseason |
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|
Coaches' Poll |
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|
Place |
Team (first place votes) |
Total |
|
1. |
Stephen F. Austin (12) |
144 |
|
2. |
Northwestern State (1) |
130 |
|
3. |
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi |
124 |
|
4. |
Sam Houston State |
109 |
|
5. |
Lamar |
85 |
|
6. |
UIW |
81 |
|
7. |
Southeastern Louisiana |
70 |
|
8. |
New Orleans |
69 |
|
9. |
Houston Baptist |
61 |
|
10. |
McNeese State |
54 |
|
11. |
Nicholls |
36 |
|
12. |
Central Arkansas |
34 |
|
13. |
Abilene Christian |
17 |
